Robert McCloskey

Whenever Burt Dow, who lives in a snug little house on the Maine coast, sets out to sea, his pet giggling gull goes along But this time, it will take all his might and some plain old ingenuity to save him and the gull from a raging storm.

Recent Comments "Burt Dow, Deep-Water Man"

A tall tale about a retired deep-water man. I loved the line about his painting inside the whale's tummy:"He was beginning to enjoy himself - probably because it was the first time he'd ever had a chance to really express his personality in paint."This is accompanied by an illustration of the whale's pink tummy, splattered and streaked with yellow, black, and brown splotches - it might have been quite modern in 1963.I also liked the complete blackness of the pages just after he convinced the wha [...]

We read this in our Make Way for McCloskey as recommended by Sonlight P3/4 and while I love the sepia tones of Make Way for Ducklings the vividly colorful illustrations send the reader for a whirl. If ever there were a read aloud to bring out my slightly hidden Georgia accent oh my it would be with Burt, Leela, and Idely Tidely! This was a fun read and I'm sure with more read oversea I will find even more fun behind it. There are rhymes and rhythm. There are sounds and repeats. So much for enter [...]

A lesser-known McCloskey but deserves to have more fame. Old salt Burt Dow has an old boat that he takes out fishing, and one day, because of good weather, he takes it farther out than usual. He has an extraordinary adventure. This is a perfect read-aloud for 5 and up, especially for kids in that band-aid, boo-boo fascination stage. Plus it has whales.

This book is older than I am, but when i crack open that rarely used spine, I am engulfed in a magic of color and story as only Robert McClosky can do. Burt Dow is a retired boat man. He has one small, leaky, rainbow boat left. One day while out on the water, he captures a whale of a tale. But if I told you the story you wouldn’t believe it. There are some stories that should stick around for generations and this is one. I would love to see new copies reprinted for today's generation. But the [...]

Best read aloud children's book ever. Add a Dad willing to milk all the comedy he can out of the characters' voices, and the children will giggle themselves happily off to dreamland. Find the sturdiest paper copy you can, for this will be enjoyed often.

When I saw that this book had only 38 reviews, I had to add mine. I never heard of this book growing up, but my husband saved his copy. Yes, this is a looong picture book, especially by today's standards. Anyone who has read it aloud can feel for me: my three-year-old son was so obsessed by this book we had to read it many times each day. My poor ol' engine was so wore out, it was going clackety-BANG clackety-BANG. Not that my son noticed. He would line up all his props on the playroom floor -- [...]

We borrowed this book from the library as part of a kit with an audiocassette narrated by Tim Sample and music composed by Petr Skoumal. We enjoyed listening to the heavily accented narration while we followed along with the book. The illustrations are very entertaining and old fashioned, but with a riot of color that many of Robert McCloskey's other books lack. And when Burt is inside the whale, they are a bit psychedelic and resemble a Jackson Pollock painting. In fact, the whole second half o [...]

Things I loved about this book: the quirky, regionalized language; the absolutely first-rate illustrations (easy to see why McCloskey was recognized by the Library of Congress), the story itself of whales and an old fisherman and band-aids. What I didn't love about this book: It's verbose. Almost painfully so. So so many words! Especially for a children's book. While this may have held kids' attention in days past, I don't think that it will keep today's attention spans (though it may for upper- [...]

Although I dearly love McCloskey's illustrations for Blueberries for Sal, One Morning in Maine, and Make Way for Ducklings, sometimes kids need color, and Burt Dow, Deep-Water Man has plenty. While the above books revel in a gentle every-dayness with a bit of adventure thrown in, Burt Dow is a tall tale in the great American tradition. McCloskey's sense of humor is put to good use here. Highly recommended!

The art in this book is a major departure from the pencil drawings of McCloskey's other books. This book is painted in vivid springtime colors that pop. I love his use of spatter paint throughout to depict waves. I don't want to give too much away, but there are also some terrific illustrations of whales. The story is cute, if somewhat random and is told in a folksy voice that seems appropriate, if somewhat stereotypical, for a deep-water man.

The Odyssey of children's books, this one is long, vivid, highly improbable, and (to children) highly addictive. Burt's adventures with a whale, the Giggling Gull, and his fragile vessel, the Tidely-Idley are known by heart in my family. But if you set down to read it, prepare for a long haul. It isn't bad, boring, or tedious; it just goes on and on. On the plus side, at bedtime, your child may conk out well-before the story is over.

This is a bit advanced for my 4 year old, and too long for a read-aloud. However he makes me read it as often as I am willing to and it's a wonderful story of a deep-water man and his tall tales. Quite a hilarious read and I always laugh where the whales get impatient for the band-aid. Beautiful illustrations and rhyming text.

Quirky. Fun. You need to be able to explain 'Davy Jones' Locker' to your child. It's quite a bit longer than our usual stories but it is well told, has nice illustrations and is a pleasure to read. It stretched our four year old in a good way. And great holiday reading - read on a sofa over looking the sea!

This was longer than I had anticipated but a fun and quirky read. The language is regional (I know next to nothing about boat-speak) but it wasn't too far out there to understand. I didn't think my kids would make it through but they did and have mentioned the story again since finishing it. Not one I will pick up again but definitely one that gave us a happy read-a-loud memory.

Another cute read for the book/movie combo project that my sister and I are doing. This seemed rather surreal, as if he was dreaming. Even though the ending said he made it back home, it still left me wondering as to how he returned.

In an attempt to reach my goal, I am reading picture books. I'm trying to read things I should have read 20 or so years ago. But this is a humorous fun book. I think it might be a great read aloud for 3-5 graders.